I admit, I’m an information junkie. Blogs, podcasts, TV, books, Facebook groups, Twitter, Instagram—the more things I can cram into my (admittedly, overfull) head the better. For some reason cleaning hacks have become one of my obsessions, and even though I don’t practice it well all the time, I have a few cleaning shortcuts tucked into my back pocket for when I need them.

1. Clean your wood cutting board with sea salt and a cut lemon. Cutting boards are hella porous, and I recently learned that cleaning them with soap is a no-no (unless you love eating soap?). I rinse mine off after every use, then sprinkle some coarse sea salt, and give it a good rub-down with half a lemon, then rinse. Bonus: Throw the lemon in your garbage disposal when you’re done, run some water, and turn on the disposal for an instantly yummy-smelling kitchen.

2. To stop getting that icky pink/orange stuff in your bathroom, nix the bar soap and switch to a liquid shower gel. Who knew that stuff was just soap scum? Liquid soaps don’t build up like bars, so switching will make a huge difference in the buildup on your shower walls and doors/curtain.

3. For clogged sinks, flush with boiling water, then disinfect with a baking soda + vinegar combo. Try a bent metal coat hanger if the gunk needs a little “help.” You should ideally flush your sinks every six months or so. No need to mess around with harsh chemicals in products like Draino.

4. Tuck an extra trash bag in the bottom of each of your trash cans. When it’s time to take out the trash, your next bag is waiting for you. Before I discovered this trick, I seriously used to take the trash out in the small bathroom trash cans, and leave them unbagged for days after. Ick.

5. Spilled a glass of wine on your carpet or rug? Absorb as much liquid as possible, then hit it with some hydrogen peroxide. Unlike marketed stain removers, hydrogen peroxide leaves no buildup behind in the rug fibers that can discolor your rug over time. I actually got this tip from a professional rug cleaner who cleaned our rugs last month.

ADVERTISEMENT

6. Stick a piece of plastic wrap on the top of your refrigerator. Every month or so, just peel up the plastic wrap, throw it away, and replace. No need for dusting! This tip also works great on top of tall cabinets or other items above sight level.

7. Equal parts vinegar + Blue Dawn dish soap make for the most powerful, inexpensive, and versatile cleaning spray. I use my “Smurf pee” on my shower, but you can use it anywhere you need to break down tough grime. Just add your mixture to a spray bottle, spray on stains and let sit for thirty minutes, then rinse off.

8. Windex will clean stains off of fabric. I know, it seems WRONG to use Windex anywhere but glass, but after seeing so many before and after shots, I had to give it a try. A year ago or so, Little Cotton Candy decided to write in marker all over his rocking chair, and all it took was a few sprays of Windex and some scrubbing (not even that much), and the stain evaporated and stayed gone. I swear, it’s like magic.

9. Nuke your dish sponge in the microwave on HIGH for two minutes. Bam! Disinfected and dry.

10. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, start by cleaning out your kitchen sink, disinfecting it, and polishing it to a shine. Sounds insane, I know, but it’s so motivating. I got this tip from Fly Lady, who has a large following; I tried her system out for a few months but found it was too rigid for my needs.

What’s your favorite cleaning hack? Did you already know all of this stuff? I am so addicted to compiling these tricks!